Last weekend we hung out in Tiergarten (the central park of Berlin), right across from the Bellevue Palace (See? Even we got a Bellevue in Germany!)
2 big monkeys.
Michi and our friend Kay. (pronounced Kai, like kayak.)
Fanning the flames.
Just to give you an exact idea of the size of the disposable BBQ. (It worked really well though! And it cost a mere 2,50!)
I'm really pissed off today, I've had a head cold since last night-- and of course it's a gorgeous day out too. AND I popped a flat on my bike the other day and can't seem to find a place that wants to fix it in less than 5 days time. Wtf? How long does it possibly take to fix a flat tire?! I guess May is get-your-bikes-up-and-running season for cyclists and their bikes in Berlin. But I'm too achy to even go out today. My nose is like a Wal-Mart factory in China, packed to the gills and rollin' out the goods non-stop. It's 1pm and I'm still in my PJs. Ugh.
Veganism is going pretty good. Went to a Nepalese restaurant with my friend Tia today and all was good and vegan. And cheap. I especially love the last part. It's kind of weird passing by bakeries, cheese, and ice creams shops saying to myself, "Hmm.. Nope, can't have that... or that either..." but it's just a matter of finding the vegan equivalent, really (You'd be surprised at the stuff they make these days.) While Michi and I live in Mitte, the Upper West Side of Berlin (ie, less funky/trendy, much more residential and family-oriented), Tia lives in one of the funkier- and cheaper- neighborhoods, known as Kreuzberg, which is similar to the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Walking down her street today, my jaw nearly dropped at the variety and uniqueness of all the shops and cafes and markets, all filled to the brim with people of all types, which I love. Talk about a happenin' hood.
Anyway, my newest obsession is replacing my current cosmetics and toiletries with all-natural products. Actually, lemme rephrase that-- I'm just going to phase them out when they're done and then replace them with all-natural products. I was reading up on food additives and cosmetic/toiletry additives and it kind of freaked me out... For example, additives in tons of popular cosmetics/toiletries:
• Sodium laurel, lauryl sulfate (SLS), sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) - Is a white powder used in thousands of cosmetic products and non-cosmetic products. SLS is a strong degreaser that dries the skin and hair. It can also cause hair loss. Used in many products that are called natural as a result these products are not natural. This product is found in shampoos, toothpastes, lotions, and creams. It is also found in many car washes, engine degreasers, and garage floor cleaners. When combined Triethanolamine (TEA) it can become a nitrosamine, which is a potent class of carcinogen.
• Mineral Oil, Paraffin, and Petrolatum - Are hydrocarbons which come from petroleum products. On the skin, it is heavy and greasy and clogs pores. It is toxic and leads to skin issues. It disrupts natural skin grown causing skin aging. It is also suspected cause of cancer and disrupts hormonal activity. If take internally, it prevents the absorption of nutrient into the blood in the small intestines.
• Phenol carbolic acid, Phenolic compounds - Are used as a preservative and found in many lotions and skin creams. They are toxic and can cause paralysis, convulsions, coma and even death from respiratory failure.
• Benzoic Acid, sodium benzoate - is used as a preservative in cosmetics and foods. Often combined with sodium bisulfites, which are banned in some countries. This is a dangerous additive, since in low amounts it has been associated with brain damage, neurological disorders, and cancer.
The worst part was when I looked at my shampoos and facial cleansers. They had ALL these chemicals. I know, I know, I may be going overboard but it just sort of makes sense to me to not trust all these chemicals in the stuff we use/eat every day. The vegan shops I've researched all have alternative/natural cosmetics and whatnot (even natural laundry detergent!) But it is definitely more expensive, of course (around 5-6 euros for a very small bottle of shampoo! 150ml! Time to used quarter-sized drops I guess..)
On that note (sort of a tangent, but whatever), they say that, in order to lead a healthy life, no single ingredient you consume should have more than 5 ingredients in it. (Ie, it's okay to combine lots and lots of ingredients as long as each individual ingredient contains less then 5 ingredients in it...Got that?)
I know, I'm turning into a total hippie. Hah!
Oh, and Micha is trying to tell me that I have a bald spot on the crown of my head (where my part ends.) Of course, there's no way I can actually see if I indeed do (although I'm vehemently disagreeing wit him on the topic, I have a ton of hair, damnit!) unless he takes a picture with our digital camera. But I totally refuse to do that or let him do it either. He only pays attention to it because at my height, the top of my head fits neatly under his chin, so it's like a constant presence for him I guess.
He's making vegan pancakes for me with soy milk and a vegan egg substitute...so sweet and considerate. :)
Oh and another thing: The Dalai Lama is coming to Berlin (or perhaps he's already here?) and there's going to be a massive gathering/peaceful demonstration at the Brandenburg Gate for Tibetan Solidarity. We'll be there!
I had a great trip home, although (no offense, ma) being home (in a new house, so not exactly home) with my parents was a bit odd after having lived solo and then with my bf for the past 8 months. And before/during/after my trip back, I've been finding myself sort of pondering and struggling over what the word means for me. Yea, there's a literal home, a home where you grew up, and a metaphorical home, a place where you feel at home. Not like I had that much trouble adjusting to the new house (well, not like I had that much time to adjust anyhow, I was busy buzzing around in my car, aka zippy car, aka caffetiera, aka the percolator! Way too many family and friends to visit.. and I still got flak from some for not including them in my plans! But Beaker was my number 1 concern anyhow so deal with it, peopo!) I ate horrendously, with pizza and pasta being number 1 on the list of what I'd eaten... Ugh. Now I'm paying for it. Regardless, it was fun and I miss my nephew already. And I wish I had gotten to see some people more than just once! (Like Nico aka my little buddy, the little baby I used to babysit :)
I was just reading some previous posts I had written and this one (obviously as I'm typing it) and I notice that sometimes I write how I speak/think-- ie I don't put that much thought into these blog posts, which sometimes results in sloppy posts dripping with spelling errors, etc. I'm also sort of a forgetful person and a scatterbrain to boot. So mix that together with too many thoughts going on in my head at once, and the result is a mishmosh of dashes and parentheses since I feel I need to immediately type everything in lest I forget what I was just thinking. My favorite professor (the one who suggested I apply to University of Wisconsin) was the one that pointed that out to me (the fact that I was/am a scatterbrain, hehe.)
Anyway, I got back to Berlin and it was like Christmas all over again for Michi. Presents from my grandmother, mother and me, wee! A new backpack, a shoebox full of nonna's famous cookies (which are an instant reminder of my childhood), a bracelet, a new water canteen, 2 Wii games and more.
What sucked about getting back here was that I had to work within an hour and 30 minutes of my plane landing. I didn't originally schedule it that way; my plane was late. But oddly enough, I didn't have jetlag. Stayed up til 10pm on Thursday, took a 2 hour nap on Friday and I was good to go.
Today I had off due to a class cancellation. Not like I work too many hours but I got to sleep in, read some and just generally ride around the city and see cool stuff and interesting people and architecture. Which reminds me, I always forget to bring my camera! There were definitely things I wanted to take pics of and I missed the opportunities. And I got a flat tire. A damn nail went into my rear tire. That sucked. I walked all the way home, although I could have taken the U or S-bahn but that would have cost me 3,60 euros and I only had 1 stop to go. Weather was nice enough so I didn't mind. Also went to a vegan health food store. Yea, as if I am not complicated enough as a person, I'm trying out veganism for the first time. Started officially yesterday. Not that I'm not happy about being vegetarian but since I was a kid I always felt it was kind of weird that humans drank cow's milk, for one. I really love milk, don't get me wrong. (Don't even get me started on cheese. I'm such a formaggiona! Vegan cheese is definitely not a good substitute whatsoever-- at least, not yet.) But scientifically speaking, I think our bodies were designed to drink our mothers' breast milk for a while and that's it. And to this day, the enzyme in our bodies use as babies to breaks down lactose fades away and disappears as we get older, which explains why many of us become lactose intolerant by the time we're in our early teens (including me.) I do like fish but when I first starting being vegetarian, I didn't eat fish (for about a year or two.) I don't think I'll miss that too much. As for nutrition, there's no question that you get all the vitamins/minerals/protein you need on a vegan diet. And pretty much any way you slice the cake, it's healthier for you, which is pretty much the bottom line for me. This is what I made for dinner yesterday. With a side of Lebanese bulgur. Sooo good. I'm eating it again now actually. (I even omitted the honey in the bulgur recipe since it's technically an animal product. I promised myself I would go all or nothing! And I also promised myself I would post about falling off the bandwagon if I do.)
I do feel bad for Michi's mom though, who cooks for us three when we visit her on the weekends. It's nice enough that she cooks vegetarian meals for me, so I feel bad that I'm making life harder for her. But we'll have to cooperate. Michi's grandmother won't take the news so lightly, as most Germans don't understand non-meat eaters. Anyway, we'll see how long I last. (Just to let you know, when I became a vegetarian about 10 years ago, it also started as a weird fad/phase I was going through. It just never ended.)
My ultimate goal is to be a weird/cool (it's all relative) vegan Italian doctoral student with really long dreadlocks in Wisconsin. Ahahaha! Slowly but surely.
Oh, by the way, I'm also little beaker's godmother! woohoo!
Born at 11:46pm on April 22nd, 2008, weighing in at 6lb 1oz, heeeeere's Dario!!!
Wee! Poor nephew has to get used to zia Daniela being so loud!
Lil Beaker and me.
Nonna!
I'm keepin' my eye on you!
ET phone home? Aka chin-scratching/pondering the universe...
Mom, is that you?!
Yep. Ok, back to sleep now.
Ooohh, gettin' woozy...
Cannot....stay....awake....
After I hugged/kissed my mom at the airport (and cried a lil!), I asked her what the status was. I had no idea if my sis in law 1. was giving birth at that very moment, 2. was still at home waiting for the doctor to call her in to induce her, or 3. already gave birth. So as soon as I asked what the status was, she stopped in her tracks, realizing I was in dark about it all, and said, "The baby is born!" And from then on it was all a flash... :) It was an emotional day... Just looking at the pics, I'm gettin' faklempt!
Thought this was le funny. It's an unidentified artwork on display right now in Potsdamer Platz. (I work in that building just behind it.)
So what news! To be precise, I have a 4 year teaching assistantship (full ride + stipend) at UWM (again, Wisconsin is here, people) for my masters and some of the doctoral program. The first thing my brother, the die hard fan of University of Michigan's Wolverines (college football), says to me: "Michigan plays Wisconsin every year! Get me the fukin tickets!" Hahaha. Will try!
So on Wednesday, when I get home, there will be much to celebrate, because just to make it a double whammy (remember that game show? No whammies, no whammies, no whammies, STOP!!!!!!!!), my sis in law went to the doctor to see whether they should let the kid stay nice and warm in the womb for a while more (ie, kicking my sis in the ribs and stomping on her bladder all day long) or pop him out sooner, the doc said that if she doesn't pop the cork within the next three days, they'll induce her... on Wednesday!!! I guess my nephew is waiting fo his zia Daniela. :)
In a few hours in the Berlin's Olympia Stadion, Dortmund (a city in the northwest) will play Bayern (Bavaria) in the German national soccer championships. Historically, there was (and still is, to a certain degree) lots of tension between the north and the south. If you called a northern German a southern (Bayerisch), or vice versa, it would be like calling a Scot a Brit (ie, be prepared to run. Fast.) Anyway, biking through Zoologischer Garten aka "Zoo" (here's a virtual version of what it looks like) earlier this afternoon, it almost felt like the World Cup all over again. Zoo seemed as though it swarming with bees: thousands of beer-handed Dortmund fans dressed in yellow and black, all buzzing around, singing and shouting their team's (and other) soccer chants, waving massive yellow and black flags and brandishing 4 foot long blow-up bananas like machetes. There was about 10 Bayern fans, sporting red and black attire. They must have taken over a different part of the city.
We're off to a "Frühlings Fest" (Spring Festival) across the street from our pad, even tho it feels more like Herbst with this chilly 45 degree and zero sun. (Unfortunately, Frühling in northern Deutschland doesn't really come until later in May.) And damnit, I have to find my digital camera!
I think it should be done. There are very few things I preach about (at least, I think...) but this is one of them. So far I got a few friends and my boyfriend to stop purchasing dozens of bottles of water per week and instead to use a brita filter and fill up a nalgeen water bottle instead. (But I just ordered two stainless steel water canteens because after a long while of using and resuing my plastic canteens/nalgenes, the scratches made in the plastic from normal usage can actually lead to leaking bits of poison right into the water it holds. Eek!)
Here are some extracts from various sources about how bottled water 1> is a scam (i.e. not really being cleaner than most tap water samples), 2> reeks havoc on the environments by the oil it requires to produce, but also the oil (gas) it takes to transport it to all sort of sales points.
Bottled water, a natural resource taxing the world's ecosystem "...the United States was the largest consumer of bottled water, with Americans drinking 26 billion liters in 2004, or about one eight-ounce (25 cl) glass per person every day. Mexico was the second largest consumer at 18 billion liters followed by China and Brazil at 12 billion liters each. In terms of consumption per person, Italians came first at nearly 184 liters, or more than two glasses a day, followed by Mexico and the United Arab Emirates with 169 and 164 liters per person respectively. Belgium and France follow close behind and Spain ranks sixth."
"The study, citing the Container Recycling Institute, said that 86 percent of plastic water bottles in the United States end up as garbage and those buried can take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade."
Seven Misconceptions about Plastic and Plastic Recycling "Plastic packaging has economic, health, and environmental costs and benefits. While offering advantages such as flexibility and light weight,it creates problems including: consumption of fossil resources; pollution; high energy use in manufacturing; accumulation of wasted plastic in the environment; and migration of polymers and additives into foods.
“More than 90 percent of the environmental impacts from a plastic bottle happen before the consumer opens it,” said Dr. Allen Hershkowitz, a senior scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council. Oil for plastic, oil for shipping, oil for refrigeration — and in the end, most of the effort goes to landfills."
Tapped Out: The True Cost of Bottled Water "Last year Americans spent nearly $11 billion on over 8 billion gallons of bottled water, and then tossed over 22 billion empty plastic bottles in the trash. In bottle production alone, the more than 70 million bottles of water consumed each day in the U.S. drain 1.5 million barrels of oil over the course of one year.
"Not only does bottled water contribute to excessive waste, but it costs us a thousand times more than water from our faucet at home, and it is, in fact, no safer or cleaner. "The bottled water industry spends millions of dollars a year to convince us that their product is somehow safer or healthier than tap water, when in fact that's just not true," says Victoria Kaplan, senior organizer with Food and Water Watch."
"While single-use water bottles should never be used more than once, some reusable water bottles simply shouldn't be used. The debate continues over the safety of bisphenol A (BPA), a hormone-disrupting chemical known to leach out of the #7 polycarbonate plastic used to make a variety of products, including popular Nalgene Lexan water bottles. New studies keep cropping up that don't bode well for BPA, demonstrating that even extremely low doses of the chemical can be damaging. [Buy stainless steel water canteens!] Recent research has linked the chemical to a variety of disorders,including obesity and breast cancer, and one chilling 2007 study, published in the journal PLoS Genetics, found that BPA exposure can cross generations. Pregnant mice exposed to low levels of BPA led to chromosomal abnormalities, which possibly cause birth defects and miscarriages, in grandchildren."
Contains essential nutrients for the body such as calcium and iron.
Natural minerals are removes by filtration.
Chlorine residual in water to prevent bacteria growth.
No disinfectant present to kill bacteria in bottles.
Ok, now that I sound like a friggin' tree-huggin, organic-eating, bleeding heart liberal, this Penn & Teller episode about the bullshit behind bottled water is really worth a watch, just for a laugh if anything:
Last bit of me being a pseudo-hippie: Think about where the stuff you buy comes from and how far it must travel in order to get to your local supermarket. Buy locally!
Yes, he really is always this sweet. He baked bread again with a message written on it again today but half the loaf mysteriously disappeared before I came home. :P But it said "Dani and Michi since 2005." Aww. :)
But before I get into that, my mom calls me yesterday and tells me the story about how Law & Order is going to be used to film a scene for Law & Order. Pretty cool, huh? Supposedly Ice-T will be one of the actors there on that day. In my parents' living room.
It's been a little over month since I moved from Italy to Berlin and the biggest difference (other than cultural or geographical...or climate-wise.. or food-wise..) is that the time goes by much faster here. For whatever reason. It's 4:18pm on a Sunday, I just got done looking at hundreds of pictures of Southeast Asia from my friend Billy, who's been backpacking there since January (!), I looked out the kitchen window to see a bleary Berlin sky and.. *sigh*. I got a tad of the Sunday blues. Don't get me wrong-- I'm way better than I was a few weeks ago, or even last week for that matter and I do love this city (poor Michi has to deal with my high-anxiety, constant-crises personality on a 24/24 basis) but I just get really jealous when I see pictures of people I know in places I've never been. So my latest mini-crisis (just a half hour ago) erupted (there's always one brewing): when will Michi and I ever have the time to disappear and travel-- Australia, New Zealand, Tazmania and Indonesia? 3 months right there!-- while we're still young? (ie, before kids and possibly before marriage?) He's graduating next August but I still have to do my masters and doctorate, since my ultimate career goal is to be a professor. Usually, the answer (from Michi, or just the logical one that I refuse to admit to myself) is "you just have to wait and find out."
And that brings me to the subject of this blog post. I'm apologizing to my sister-in-law in advance (prego or not, I bet she can do the human pretzel position in under 5 seconds. Cirque de Soleil ain't got nothing on her yoga poses!)
So I've been trying several classes at Jopp, getting a feel for which ones I like, which I don't, etc. So, Indoor cycling? Yep. Fit Bo (kickboxing)? Yep. Power Workout (barbells, weights, and heavy stuff?) Yep. Yoga? *cringe* Nope. Michi actually suggested I try one to de-stress myself since I'm usually a nutty basketcase (with or without caffeine.) I've come to realize that I usually try a yoga class once a year and every single time, it's the same result. Yesterday, I did Power Workout class (about an hour) then did Yoga. For an hour and a half. Unfortunately, I'll never get those 90 minutes back. Let's see... I spend roughly 15 minutes looking at clock, 10 wishing I was home playing Super Mario Galaxy on our Wii, and another 5 making a grocery list in my head. And 20 napping on the damn mat. Ok, ok, there were some really interesting positions like this one:
I call this one the Nancy Kerrigan.
And this one the Olivia Newton-John (in the "Let's Get Physical" music video.)
This was actually fun.
But then there were several poses like this one, which, even though I used a nice foam yoga mat, were killing my hip bones (even though I thought I had enough fat there to cushion it..)
I don't even wanna talk about this one. If someone slapped me on the back, I probably would have stayed that way just like those little girls making the ugly pig faces in One Crazy Summer.
And whenever I look at pictures of yoga poses, I think about how cool it is and get all down on myself cuz I just can't seem to get into it. I say to myself, "You lack discipline!!!" (usually in the Ahnold voice for the additional verbal flogging effect.) Maybe Power Yoga would be better for me since it's more aggressive but Jopp doesn't offer that, so I'm SOL. But then I just realize that I'm more of a ju-jitsu gal and I really miss it. And piano too, since we're on that topic (actually learning/playing pieces.)
Anyway, I'll be back for about 2 weeks at the end of April for the birth of my nephew, whose name is Dario (and I quote my brother, who says it's "a nice guinea name" hehe.) He hasn't been born just yet but my sis-in-law already had false labor last week! (The official due date is April 24th I believe.) Put a cork in it!
I just put the first 3 seasons of The Muppet Show in my cart on amazon.com. I'm so excited to start watching hilarious stuff like this with my baby nephew!
and this, one of my favorites:
In case you don't know what Rickrolling is:
Rickrolling is an Internet meme involving Rick Astley's music video for his song "Never Gonna Give You Up". In a Rickroll, a person provides a link they claim is relevant to the topic at hand which actually takes the user to the Astley video. It can also mean playing the song loudly in public in order to be disruptive. The practice began as a variant of an earlier prank called duckrolling, in which a link to a popular celebrity or news item would instead lead to a photoshopped picture of a duck with wheels.
Oh! and just to tie this all in with my prior post...
In connection with the online meme, Never Gonna Give You Up was played and performed at some of the Project Chanology February 2008 protests against the Church of Scientology. At February 10, 2008 protests in New York City, Washington D.C., London, Edinburgh and Seattle, protesters played the song through boomboxes and shouted the phrase "Never gonna let you down!", in what The Guardian called "a live rick-rolling of the Church of Scientology". In response to a website created by Scientologists showing an anti-Anonymous video, Project Chanology participants created a website with a similar domain name with a video displaying the music video to "Never Gonna Give You Up".
For 2 of my 3 jobs, I had to sign a very interesting separate contract clause that says exactly this:
I, [my name here] as a freelance worker for, among others, [name of my language school here], declare that in the fulfillment of my contract I will not in any way apply the teachings or technology of L. Ron Hubbard (founder of Scientology). I further confirm that I have never been and am not a member of IAS (International Association of Scientologists) and will not recruit new members for the IAS.
Violation of this agreement can result in termination of the freelance contract without notice. Furthermore, [name of my language school here] has the right to pursue any damages incurred as a result.
Oh and I love the title of this contract clause: "Voluntary Sect Filter Clause." Gotta love euphemisms. :) I know that Germany isn't too fond of Scientologists, but I didn't know this would be one of the ramifications...Interestingly enough, the Interior Ministry, which is actually right next to our apartment building, is in the midst of deciding whether Scientology will undergo federal investigation (since it's only undergoing state-level investigation right now) in hopes of eventually banning the "religion." Reason why?
Source - Time Magazine "...the Scientology organization, agenda and activities are marked by objectives that are fundamentally and permanently directed at abolishing the free democratic basic order" and in 2004, a German judge"... ruled that the monitoring was warranted because the activities of the Scientologists were a threat to German constitutional protections, and in particular the right of Germans to exercise their political will, the right to equal treatment, and guarantees against bodily harm. (The judge ruled, among other things, that the group brainwashes members.)" From what I've heard so far from colleagues and other Germans, the government here is basically treating it almost as a terrorist organization and doing their best to watch them as closely as possible to get clear(er) proof to ban them. About a month ago they shut down a Scientology daycare center in Munich, claiming that they were teaching the kids according to the Scientology ideologies. Meanwhile, the German Scientology headquarters sprang up in Berlin in 2005 (it's about a mile and a half from our pad.)
Scientologists ACTUALLY believe the evil alien ruler Xenu killed a lot of aliens (Thetans) from around the universe by bringing them to earth & blowing them up inside volcanoes. They believe the souls of these aliens (these souls are "Body Thetans") have attached themselves to us & cause many of our mental & physical ills. Members who know about Xenu will attempt to deny it or pretend like it doesn’t matter. They are required to sign a contract binding them to silence on the matter. Lower level members don’t know about Xenu & accordingly deny everything because they honestly don’t know.
To rid ourselves of "Body Thetans" & also “engrams” (past negative experiences stored in our unconscious mind) so that we can become “clear”, we have to go through "auditing" with a member of the “church” who uses an "e-meter" to measure our “reactive mind”...... & we have to pay lots & lots of money for “auditing” (purchased in 12.5-hour blocks, costing anywhere from $750 for introductory sessions to between $8,000 & $9,000 for advanced sessions) & to take courses on Scientology to advance to higher “levels” in the “church”. The “church” has also taken a very hostile stance towards psychiatry & psychiatric drugs irrespective of the fact that some people require medication to remain adequately functional in everyday life. They deny the reality of chemical imbalance & profound mental disturbance & accordingly do NOTHING to effectively stabilize the dangerously unstable. The “church” has been known to withhold prescription pharmaceuticals from member (with deadly results).
Scientology is undeniably a cult. For more information on what a cult is & what their damaging effects are, please visit the link provided at the bottom of the sources. Just know that Scientology DOES qualify by meeting these 5 criteria:
(1) It uses psychological coercion to recruit, indoctrinate & retain its members. (2) It forms an elitist totalitarian society. (3) Its founder leader is self-appointed, dogmatic, messianic, not accountable & has charisma. (4) It believes 'the end justifies the means' in order to solicit funds & recruit people. (5) Its wealth does not benefit its members or society.
...lots of news, good and bad. I've been a busy lady lately, sorry for the delay... But first, like the new blog format? The colors are annoyingly cute and it's sort of the NYC skyline but not really. Love it. Thanks to Michi for that. :)
Here's some pics of Michi and me baking nutella cupcakes:
Crazy about Nutella.
Michi looks like a nutella cupcake stalker here.
I've been making good use of my last month at the gym membership. I think I need to extend that for another 6 months. Jopp is a women-only gym, and while co-ed gyms certainly don't bother me, the facilities are great. Clean, chic, tons of fun classes, sauna/steam room/etc. (Come to think of it, I usually feel more comfortable with all boys, just like it used to be when i used to do ju-jitsu in Fair Lawn...The tomboy in me will never die.) It costs 74 euros a month, and with the exchange rate (~117 USD) it seems kind of steep. But then again, any gym in NYC would probably cost the same amount or more. Plus I don't really have a problem paying that price for the mental-physical benefits.
Living with Michi is so easy-- but the only hard part is the fact that he's a skinny tall guy with a salacious sweet tooth! I working on getting a harness around that dark horse that is my (semi lack of) self-discipline. It's so much fun cooking and baking together though, and we do it often. And one of the items on my "Things My Future Husband Will Do" list (which I created when I was circa 11 years old-- I know, ambitious, right?) was cook and clean with me. I originally thought Christian Slater might fit that bill (it was 1993..) but Michi has fulfilled that one since Day 1, so I'm pretty happy about that. He's very 50-50 with the house duties (I'm sure a small bit of that is because he knows I'll get pissed off if I realize I'm the only one doing the chore, but he insists that he likes doing things together, so I believe him.)
I must say though, I do have a lot more respect for my mom and all the house chores. How is it that there's always something in the sink to wash?! Ugh! My problem is that I always want to read, work on my lesson preparation, relax, play Wii, or update my blog, etc, but I always find some house cleaning to do! I can't seem to concentrate on anything else unless everything around me perfectly clean and organized. (I know, I'm a lil OCD...but damnit, I'm proud of it.) And seeing as we live in a relatively small studio apartment, it's one of that reasons why I don't really want to live in a big house. I would never stop freaking out about cleaning/washing/sweeping/scraping bits off the toaster oven/organizing the cabinets/aligning each dish towel at a 90° angle on the left-hand stool along the side kitchen partition. Ya know, stuff we all do, right? (Speaking of houses, Michi studies architecture-- he's graduating next August, yay!-- so he says that he'll be designing our future house. I'm sure he can already see me meddling with the plans left and right. Ugh, I'm such a control freak...)
Last week was Easter slash Michi's mom's Birthday. Michi baked farmer's bread for her and I baked a cake. I'm no baker, lemme tell you, and I was nervous as hell because his mom is the German version of Betty Crocker and I'm, uh, more like Julia Child let's just say. But I have a pretty good rapport with spice cakes, so I decided to make this one (minus the rum glaze for easier transport purposes.) I'm normally not a fan of Emeril for his main dishes but this recipe looked good. So I started baking up a storm and reached the last step in the recipe when a black cloud so silently creeped up behind me and clouded my mood (which, at the time, was bursting of rainbows.)
Recipe:In another large bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Me: Ok, no problem. I can do that. Just please don't ask me to fold them into the batter. Recipe: Gradually add the remaining 1/4 cup sugar, beating on high speed, until stiff. Me: Ok.. ok... Oh god.. no folding, no folding, PLEASE NO FOLDING!!! Recipe: Fold the egg whites into the batter. Me: SON OF A BITCH!!!!! GODDDDD!!!!
A whirl of bad-angel-food-cake-recipes-gone-wrong just flooded back into my mind. Oh god, I never did learn how to fold egg whites correctly. Meanwhile, the stiff peaks of the egg whites are ticking like a time bomb. Must fold now. Eggs will deflate. Cake will die. Disapproval will follow. Dignity will flee. Must Fold Now! So I furiously googled a bunch of recipes and even videos on how to fold egg whites (sons of bitches!), did the deed, chucked the batter in the bundt in the oven, fell up against the kitchen wall knees bent, and wiped the cold sweat from my brow, traumatized. (Center to side is key, by the way.)
The result? A not overly sweet, just spicy-enough, near-perfect consistency cake-- it was a hit. *Pats self on back* :)
So, what else.. Job? Check. Bike? Check. Job 2? Check. Job 3? Check. Michi says that my bike is the Worst 50 Euros Ever Spent. Ever. And it probably is, but my defense is that bikes are expensive! A decent one costs around 200 euros, which I certainly don't have available at the moment. Whatever, I'll post a picture of it when my embarrassment weans. It's probably about 15 years old, weighs a hefty 7lbs, has taped-on front and back reflector lights, 3 gears (the 2nd and 3rd are so hard to bike with, even on flat land, that I always keep it on the 1st), the front wheel hits my feet when I make a turn, it crackles and pops with ever pedal-push, and all its paint is chipped off (but it's not rusting...yet!) My friends at TakeABike (if you ever come to Berlin, rent a bike here!) gave me a free new metal basket, so that's basically my pride and joy. Oh yea, and my bike has coaster breaks which actually takes a lot of getting used to (ie, not hand breaks but the ones where you push backward on the pedals to stop.) So on top of everything else, I feel like an 8-year-old. So far, I fell off my bike once, while stopped at a traffic light, on the way home from buying the damn thing. I hadn't quite figured out the gears yet (don't ask), and a huge gust of wind blew me over-- into a pile of crushed glass. Into a pile. of. crushed. glass. Who the HELL falls into a pile of crushed glass?!?! Ugh! I mean, it must have been from a recent car accident clean up that wasn't 100% cleaned up. Great, thanks. About 1 foot ahead or back I would have been safe but, alas, Murphy's Law bit me right the ass, once again. So I get my dumbass back up again and try to laugh it off and then start to feel a warm liquid running down my right leg. Great, I'm bleeding all over my pants, all the way home. Luckily they were just some deep scratches and nothing more. (Oh, and how is it that, no matter what direction I'm going, the wind is always going against me?)
I also crashed into a door, a traffic light pole, and the back of a BMW. In the same day.
Right, so jobs. I'm working as an English teacher (what else?) for three different language schools. All Business English. It sounds like a lot, but considering each class is about 1.5 hours, it's not even full time just yet, since I have three classes with one company, two with another and one with the third. Most of the classes require you to travel to the companies to teach at their office so it's sort of like being an English-teaching gypsy. On Friday, Michi and I went to the town hall to get me registered as a resident of Berlin and get a tax number (but I don't have to pay taxes unless I work here for more than a year.) And we also opened a bank account without depositing not one penny. (Is it even possible to do that in the States?) Oh, the wonders of frugal living...I feel sort of like Winona Ryder in Reality Bites. Did I mention that I don't get my first paycheck until the end of April? *grumble*
The only really bad news I have at the moments is that I'm on a waiting list to receive a full-ride Teaching Assistantship from University of Wisconsin-Madison. I know, I had to google a map of the USA to find Wisconsin. And I'm still having trouble pinpointing when I first glance on a map. All I know is that the Giants played the Packers there in January and it was a nut-freezing -23F. So yea, the TAship would mean that I would do my masters for free in exchange for teaching 2 classes a semester there. Cheap labor for them, free ride for me. How much better can it get? Right, so, yea, the good news would be that I've been officially accepted to do my Masters by what is probably the best--and toughest-- Italian department in the nation. My other option, if I don't choose to go there anyway, would be to attend Rutgers, where I'm actually on a leave of absence there right now even though I never started. Still a very good program, but the overachiever in me wants the best. (And why not, right?) So cross your fingers, legs, eyes, and toes for me, peeps, cuz in two weeks I'm gonna be either jumping off a balcony or jumping like Balki:
He turned 25 on March 7th (ya, we're about a year and 2 months apart) and, quoting him, he's way over the hill. So over the hill, in fact, that he wants to join the legendary ranks of Walt Disney in a cryogenically frozen state. Hehe.
We went back to his hometown, Mirow, for the weekend and celebrated with tons of cake and walks in the countryside. And whenever Michi wanted to do something, anything, during his birthday weekend he would state his intentions, wait a nanosecond for me to concur with his plan and add, with puppydog eyes, his head slightly tilted to the side, with a bit of childlike guilt/tantrum in his voice: "I wiiish...!!" It was really cute, actually. Oh yea, what did I get him? A waterproof ipod speaker case, a Fossil watch (he loves watches, and his last watch broke...I originally got him a watch similar to but nicer than this one, but we exchanged it for this one, (my boyfriend is an old soul, as his mother said to me the other night), and tickets to see Radiohead in Berlin in July.
At a German restaurant. Fish, meat, potatoes, cream sauce and schmalz. (Fish was good...Schmalz is deer fat that they smear on bread like we do with butter before the main meal. I had to control my gag reflex.)
3 homemade cakes! The typical poppyseed cake, a hazelnut-cherry-with-cream-on-top cake and another crazy good cake with god knows what lovely ingredients inside!
I made nutella cupcakes and this heart-shaped nutella cake, since my boyfriend is a chocoholic.. (I love nutella myself but can't say I'm big fan of chocolate in general. I really love white chocolate, but we all know that's not even considered real chocolate in the first place.)
No offense Italy, but now I know why my parents only go there for vacation and only every few years now. Talk about a love-hate relationship! (I have another post that, in and through my eyes, perfectly describes the pendulous nature of a typical day in Italy, from elation to frustration and everything in between.
Well, I've been in Berlin for 2 weeks now, officially. Time to get writing a bit! It took me a while to get settled in, which even included a day trip back to Milan last Wednesday where I had to get up at 4:30am to catch a 7:45am flight from Schönefeld Airport (which I not-so-affectionately call Shittyfeld, due to a) its highly undesirable location, nearly an hour south of central Berlin and 2) it being crappily organized, which is saying a lot, since we are after all in Germany. Only the Swiss might know how to organize things better. Might. (But shh, make like I didn't even mention that!) and then I came back at 12 midnight. Went to bed at 3am and got up at 7:30 to make it to my intensive German course, which runs 4 days a week, 3 hours per day. (I love it!) Anyway, the weather here reminds me of London. No, not always raining but rather unpredictable. www.wetter.de ain't got nothing on real-time weather here. For example, this morning around 7:30 it was partly cloudy, nice mix of sun and clouds. Then at noon I saw 3 or 4 clouds (if that) and now (about 4pm) it's completely cloudy, no sun at all, and it's drizzling on and off. Very confusing and slightly obnoxious, if one may say that about nature. Layering your clothing is key, especially when you're traveling by bike, as I am. The BVG (public transportation company in Berlin, who control the subway, buses, and trams) have been on strike since last Monday (March 3rd) so there are only the S-Bahn (Strasse Bahn or Street Trains) which are basically just like the subway, but above ground, since the S-Bahn is controlled by Deutsche Bahn (DB is the German equivalent of Amtrak.) There were scares of DB also striking, leaving the city completely paralyzed (only about 30% of Berliners own cars), but luckily that hasn't happened. I told my mom about this the other day and we both laughed at the fact that I just came from a country that loooves to strike, and naturally they strike often (it's really sometimes a manifestation of their restlessness, because usually nothing gets accomplished when Italians strike), but their strikes last one day. Here in Berlin, the BVG hasn't striked in 10 years. So it's like they're making up for lost time. The strike apparently is "unbefristet" which means open-ended, until they meet an agreement with the labor union. They have announced that during Easter week (next week), they will be fully functioning again, but will again go on strike the day after Easter Sunday. I actually haven't heard that much complaining from the Germans, strangely enough.
But let's backtrack a bit, to the week before I left Italy....
Of course, to celebrate my farewell, I had to get a new haircut! (And I laugh at anyone who thought I could/would go more than 3 months with one style!)
The "autoscatto" revealed.
Rodney Dangerfield tribute.
I've been wanting to embrace the baby-bangs look for a while now and apparently the bob is back in. *shrugs* But I was carefully avoiding that, mostly because I was afraid that it might somehow trigger a tornado of insecure childhood memories from my first 16 years of life with bangs. It didn't, and I'm liking this whole blond Amelie look a whole lot, but nonetheless I'm really insecure for other reasons, which I'll get into later. I even got to go on a photoshoot for my hairdresser, which sounds like a lot of fun, but unfortunately, his makeup artist (and girlfriend) Laura made me up to look like a clown, with blue and green eyeshadow, only one coat of mascara on my stubbly, uncurled eyelashes, and dark, mauve-violet lipstick. Needless to say, I will not be posting pictures of me looking like a Romanian prostitute.
I also hosted a "Viva La Tua Vita" Farewell Party at my cosy lil place, with American, Italian, and German friends... and even an Australian! As you can see in the background in the hair pics above, I was in the midst of setting up for the festa. Incidentally, that's also when my computer died. Well, sort of. I had been having trouble with my ac adapter for a while, having to twist and turn it in intricate ways for the power to reach my laptop (since the battery has no juice left in it to last more than 5 minutes-- hey, it is from 2001-- I always have to rely on it being plugged in.) So as I was moving some furniture around for the party, I moved my computer to another corner of the apartment and whatever filaments inside the ac adapter were reaching my computer, weren't reaching it anymore, so my computer was as good as dead. Until I got another ac adapter from German Ebay. It's alive now (and still kicking!)
Anyway, here are some pics from the international buffet-style spaghettata. The word "buffet" naturally sort of scared everyone, but really, it was just to have some options to suit everyone's likings. So we had 3 different types of pasta with lots of different topping options: clams & roasted garlic, pesto, tomato sauce with eggplant and mozzarella (my personal favorite and oddly enough, also a dish which my mom usually makes me when I come home from some various adventure abroad) and of course, the obligatory grated cheese with a side of Michael Jackson's best hits:
Setting up...
Paige, Johanna (from Hamburg), Giovanni and myself getting the party started on my balcony.
Daniele baked a chocolate cake and brought delicious sparkly homemade dessert wine!
Jackie and me. She's an exchange student from Gold Coast, down unda.
No talking, mangia! Masa (from LA) and Paige (Montana.)
So that was the end of February. On February 27th I left Italy (for the first time, then going back last Wednesday to get the rest of my stuff, as previously mentioned) and I really haven't looked back. I did leave the internship early but with good reason. It wasn't what I originally signed up for in the first place (contract issues) so I didn't feel like I was curtailing and simply abandoning the job, (if I can even call it a job since the pay was understatingly measly.) The learning curve for me as a teacher and as a student (ie, perfecting my Italian) was really plateauing, and without living in a major city or having a car, it wasn't really possible to live a normal life there. Plus I figured, if I'm this close to my boyfriend, why not just spend a few months in Berlin with him, work as an English or Italian teacher, and get better at Deutsch before I have to leave in August, right? Seems logical to me. I was nervous about how the whole living together thing would go, but we're like bread and butter, perfect together. I'm still nervous since I'm still on the job prowl and my money is drying up quicker than [insert witty analogy here, plzkthx], but things will work out somehow, or so my boyfriend says (and I believe him.)
P.S. I joined a gym in Legnano in January and was obliged to enroll with a 3 month minimum, so I thought that I would basically have to eat the last month of my membership but found that the same company owns a sister gym in the center of Berlin and my membership applies there as well, yippee! (How's that for a run-on sentence?!)
